Spain expects outbreak to peak as soon as Wednesday

Authorities in Spain expect the "peak" of the coronavirus pandemic in the country to happen as soon as Wednesday after which the authorities expect a decline in the number of new cases.

Enrique Ruiz Escudero, the senior health official of Madrid's Regional Government, said on Monday that the number of cases in the country is expected to begin decreasing by the end of this week, as reported by CNN.

"We believe this week we'll reach the famous 'peak' - in which we see new cases, but less than the day before," he said.

Escudero explained the estimate is based on the correlation between the virus' maximum incubation period (14 days) and the beginning of isolation measures and school closure across the country.

Escudero said that in Madrid, 600 health workers tested positive for COVID-19, and 1,400 others who were in direct contact with infected patients and are in preventive home isolation.

Around 20 per cent of all nursing homes in the Spanish capital of Madrid have registered cases of COVID-19, Ignacio Aguado, the Vice President of Madrid's regional government told radio "Onda Cero" Monday.

"The problem is that the people who live there are very vulnerable: our elderly. When the virus gets in there, it's devastating," he said.

The deadly virus has affected more than 33,000 people in Spain and more than 2,000 have died due to the virus.

At least 349,000 people have contracted the novel coronavirus and over 15,300 have died globally, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.